MortMort
Score Classic
What it's about
Death, a seven-foot skeleton with a scythe who speaks in capital letters, needs an apprentice, and he picks Mort, a gangly teenager no good at anything else. Mort learns the job quickly but makes one terrible mistake: he saves a princess who was supposed to die. Reality starts trying to correct itself, while Death, left with time on his hands, goes off to find out what it's like to be human.
Why it's worth reading
It was voted onto the BBC's Big Read and is one of the best-loved Discworld books. It's funny and kind, and Pratchett's Death is one of the great characters in comic fiction.
You'll love it if you liked
Going Postal
The Fifth Elephant
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the GalaxyGood to know
It's the fourth Discworld novel but a good starting point; nothing earlier is needed.
By the numbers
- Readers84 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics0 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Bestseller50 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
- #14 of the 35 humor books we rank
- #86 of the 459 fantasy books we rank
- #214 of the 762 classics we rank
- #679 of the 2,816 books we rank
Why it made the list
Reads as
Adventurous, Funny, Uplifting
More by Terry Pratchett
Night Watch
Men at Arms
Guards! Guards!
The TruthIf you like this, read next
Dungeon Crawler Carl
Good Omens
Starter Villain
We Are Legion
The Kaiju Preservation Society
RedshirtsExplore the best-of lists
All 36 best-of lists →
Quick answers
Is Mort worth reading?
Yes. It was voted onto the BBC's Big Read and is one of the best-loved Discworld books. It ranks #679 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 76.3 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is Mort about?
Death, a seven-foot skeleton with a scythe who speaks in capital letters, needs an apprentice, and he picks Mort, a gangly teenager no good at anything else. Mort learns the job quickly but makes one terrible mistake: he saves a princess who was supposed to die. Reality starts trying to correct itself, while Death, left with time on his hands, goes off to find out what it's like to be human.
How long does it take to read Mort?
About 8 hours (317 pages), or about 2 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after Mort?
If you liked it, try Going Postal by Terry Pratchett, The Fifth Elephant by Terry Pratchett or The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams.